MYRTLE BEACH, Jan 22, 2013 (The Sun News (Myrtle Beach - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) --
Myrtle Beach police charged a 23-year-old Columbia man with armed robbery in connection with a 29-year-old man being robbed while trying to purchase a cellphone based on a Craigslist ad, according to a police report.

Dawan Jamal Thompson, 23, was charged with armed robbery early Monday after the victim reported the robbery a day earlier, according to police reports.

The victim told police at 7:20 p.m. Sunday he met the suspect in the parking lot at Broadway at the Beach to purchase a Samsung Galaxy Note II cellphone for $350, police said.

The victim said he gave the suspect $350 and took the phone and put his sim card in it to make sure it would work, according to the report. The victim said he put the phone on the trunk of his car and then the suspect stepped behind him and put a gun to the back of his head.

The victim said the robber ordered him to get into his vehicle, leave and not to follow the suspect, according to the report. The victim told police the suspect then grabbed the phone and ran through the parking lot.

The victim chased the suspect until he saw him get into a black convertible Mustang and drive away, according to the report.

Contact TONYA ROOT at 444-1723 or follow her at Twitter.com/tonyaroot.